1. Field of the Invention
This invention is in the field of medical apparatus. More specifically, the present invention is in the field of improved patient-transportation apparatus having means for providing supportive treatment to a patient or victim in the field, and forwarding record of that treatment to a primary-care facility.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Apparatus for transporting patients to a care facility are well-known in the art, including the emergency litter comprising two poles through the sleeves of two or more shirts as described in the Scout Handbook and a hands-free means for carrying a litter described by Sanders in U.S. Pat. No. 3,486,671. Rogers describes a stretcher having wheels and patient-restraint means in U.S. Pat. No. 5,179,746; a patient can be strapped to a rigid back-board for immobilization, and the unit carrying the patient then rolled on its wheels to either directly to a care facility or to other transportation means for subsequent transfer to the care facility. Neither the Sanders nor the Rogers apparatus have any provision for treatment of a patient other than rudimentary first-aid prior to arrival at the care facility.
Apparatus such as that described by Reinhold in U.S. Pat. No. 4,060,079 is a self-contained portable unit having parts relatively movable with respect to each other, such that the unit can be carried by one person to a location of limited accessibility; upon reaching the patient, an emergency crew can apply first aid, open the unit to accommodate the patient, and then transport the litter to appropriate transportation means, having the patient secured on the litter.
The '079 patent further describes the application of various treatments to the patient during transportation to a primary-care or other facility. This treatment includes a heart-lung resuscitator assembly, and has drug and equipment compartments for supporting oxygen containers and ancillary equipment for treatment of the patient. It has been found, however, that the Reinhold device, while useful for limited emergency cardiac-related treatment, is not suited for transporting a trauma victim while providing multiple types of supportive treatment.
Bucur, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,896,797, illustrates a partial litter, the purpose of which is to support the body of a victim undergoing cardiac stimulation. While a sturdier apparatus than that of Reinhold, the Bucur litter is not suitable for moving a victim undergoing emergency cardiac treatment, except for very short distances.
Newman describes a patient-transfer apparatus in U.S. Pat. No. 5,271,110 for moving a patient from one bed to another, or to a stretcher, litter or other transport means. The Newman apparatus, however, while useful for its described function, has no utility for field work, and is effectively limited to institutional functions in its application.
One problem which emergency-room (ER) workers have heretofore encountered with respect to patients arriving therein after transportation from a remote site, with attendant emergency treatment prior to or during such transportation, has been a lack of dependable data regarding that treatment, or the response of the patient to whatever treatment was applied. Irrespective of significant levels of training in emergency treatment, and highly competent personnel, the very fact of the circumstances of the event can lend confusion to the situation; one emergency medical-service (EMS) worker may be seeking a pulse or treating a wound while another is moving debris, requesting bystanders to move, or performing any of a number of other functions. And while time is generally of the essence in a particular situation, that very fact can render it difficult or impossible to take note of the exact times involved, the job of keeping a patient alive or out of danger being the first priority.
On the arrival of the transport team at the ER, the recollections of the team members, while individually accurate, can suffer from viewpoint, time constraints and particular job function, requiring the physician then to attempt to interpret and integrate that information in minimal time, in order properly to decide on the nature and extent of immediate treatment.
A possible method of overcoming the problem of fragmentary, confused or conflicting information would be to equip the transport device with recorders such as, e.g., a strip chart, for each mode of treatment protocol; thus, an oximeter could have a gauge for measurement of the oxygen (O.sub.2) content of the patient's blood, a pulse monitor to determine pulse rate, and other measuring devices as appropriate, whether those devices be individual or integrated. However, this method still requires the ER physician or other attendant to read and interpret the strip chart or other recorded data to obtain necessary information upon the arrival at the ER of the EMS team.